Amsterdam

For the first part of vacation, Mimi, Margaret, Melissa and I hopped on the train to Amsterdam.


Even though the cold weather/snow delayed our train a little bit, it was still fun to see the city all decked out for the holidays.


It was SO COLD. But the canals were still really pretty.



This tourist shop was right around the corner from our hotel, which was off of Dam square. How can you say no to taking your picture in a giant clog? You can't.



One of the first things we did was head to the Anne Frank House. This is the facade of the building that housed Otto Frank (Anne's father)'s business. Behind this facade is the secret annex, a small apartment which housed the family for the two years that they were in hiding before being betrayed. Otto Frank was the only family member to survive the concentration camps of the Holocaust, and as to his wishes, the apartment has remained empty of furniture.



Our trusty tram shuttled us from place to place around Amsterdam. Even though the city is pretty walkable, after about ten minutes of walking we were all afraid of losing our toes to frostbite.


The canals were frequently lined with houseboats. This one was right in front of a flee market we stumbled upon in Jordaan, one of the nicer neighborhoods in the city.


Amsterdam is also full of some pretty cool art, street art and beaux arts. While we were there, we hit up the Van Gogh museum and the Rijksmuseum, full of Rembrant (who lived in Jordaan for a while) and some Vermeer.



Van Gogh museum was definitely a highlight of the trip, but the street art was everywhere and pretty cool.